My idea to spice up non-revenue sports: the College Olympics

[shizzle787]

So I was thinking about how the NCAA would showcase its non-revenue sports, and I am going back to an idea from a few years ago: the College Olympics.

The College Olympics would be a 19-day college sports festival in the second half of May that crowns the champions of almost all of the non-revenue sports.

The sports not included would be football, m/w basketball, baseball, softball, and skiing (would have to take place in the winter). Team tennis would be moved from spring to fall.

Here would be the sports lineup:

Indoor and outdoor track and field (m/w)
Cross country (m/w)
Soccer (m/w)
Ice hockey (m/w)
Volleyball (m/w)
Beach volleyball (m/w)
Water polo (m/w)
Individual tennis (m/w)
Golf (m/w)
Gymnastics (m/w)
Swimming and diving (m/w)
Lacrosse (m/w)
Wrestling (m/w)
Fencing (m/w)
Bowling (m/w)
Rifle (m/w)
Rowing (w)
Field hockey (w)

This would require adjusting some sports (like soccer) from a one-semester schedule to a two-semester schedule.

It would also require a smaller number of teams participating in the finals event.

For instance, 48 teams make the College Cup. I would still have 48 teams qualify for the College Cup, but only the last 16 would qualify for a World Cup-style tournament at the NCAA Olympics.

I think this would increase NCAA revenue, provide more excitement to the sports calendar in May, and increase awareness of these programs.

 

[Kolumbo]

So I was thinking about how the NCAA would showcase its non-revenue sports, and I am going back to an idea from a few years ago: the College Olympics.

The College Olympics would be a 19-day college sports festival in the second half of May that crowns the champions of almost all of the non-revenue sports.

The sports not included would be football, m/w basketball, baseball, softball, and skiing (would have to take place in the winter). Team tennis would be moved from spring to fall.

Here would be the sports lineup:

Indoor and outdoor track and field (m/w)
Cross country (m/w)
Soccer (m/w)
Ice hockey (m/w)
Volleyball (m/w)
Beach volleyball (m/w)
Water polo (m/w)
Individual tennis (m/w)
Golf (m/w)
Gymnastics (m/w)
Swimming and diving (m/w)
Lacrosse (m/w)
Wrestling (m/w)
Fencing (m/w)
Bowling (m/w)
Rifle (m/w)
Rowing (w)
Field hockey (w)

This would require adjusting some sports (like soccer) from a one-semester schedule to a two-semester schedule.

It would also require a smaller number of teams participating in the finals event.

For instance, 48 teams make the College Cup. I would still have 48 teams qualify for the College Cup, but only the last 16 would qualify for a World Cup-style tournament at the NCAA Olympics.

I think this would increase NCAA revenue, provide more excitement to the sports calendar in May, and increase awareness of these programs.

I like this idea but call it something other than Olympics. University Games or something. Outside of football and basketball, I don't have anything else on my radar unless I read about it and then I'll follow if I remember to. Baseball and Hockey come up and I'll check it out. Having an annual organized televised event would probably draw my attention. Switching between sports like volleyball, gymnastics, lacrosse, water polo in an Olympic style format would definitely be a television draw.

 

[Rufus]

Isn't this kind of the same thing as the NCAA Tournaments in these sports?

 

[ZooCougar]

So I was thinking about how the NCAA would showcase its non-revenue sports, and I am going back to an idea from a few years ago: the College Olympics.

The College Olympics would be a 19-day college sports festival in the second half of May that crowns the champions of almost all of the non-revenue sports.

The sports not included would be football, m/w basketball, baseball, softball, and skiing (would have to take place in the winter). Team tennis would be moved from spring to fall.

Here would be the sports lineup:

Indoor and outdoor track and field (m/w)
Cross country (m/w)
Soccer (m/w)
Ice hockey (m/w)
Volleyball (m/w)
Beach volleyball (m/w)
Water polo (m/w)
Individual tennis (m/w)
Golf (m/w)
Gymnastics (m/w)
Swimming and diving (m/w)
Lacrosse (m/w)
Wrestling (m/w)
Fencing (m/w)
Bowling (m/w)
Rifle (m/w)
Rowing (w)
Field hockey (w)

This would require adjusting some sports (like soccer) from a one-semester schedule to a two-semester schedule.

It would also require a smaller number of teams participating in the finals event.

For instance, 48 teams make the College Cup. I would still have 48 teams qualify for the College Cup, but only the last 16 would qualify for a World Cup-style tournament at the NCAA Olympics.

I think this would increase NCAA revenue, provide more excitement to the sports calendar in May, and increase awareness of these programs.

Good idea. At the end of the season they should have a competition and crown a champion for each event.